The Philadelphia Flyers came away with a big 5-2 win vs. the Buffalo Sabres thanks to an explosive first period and solid goaltending all night from the Flyers. It was an encouraging win with the Flyers, showing that the team is moving in the right direction.

Yes, beating a team like the Buffalo Sabres is not necessarily the most impressive thing. The Flyers, on paper anyway, should have beaten Buffalo. It’s not the fact that they beat the Sabres that was impressive. Instead, it was how they beat the Sabres.

The Flyers have tended to play down to, and even lose to, teams they should beat. That was not the case on Wednesday.

Not only did Philadelphia hold off Buffalo, but they dominated. When Buffalo scored, Philly answered and piled on. That is not something you’d expect in a Flyers game, yet it happened.

So, why is this an encouraging sign?

Well, the Eastern Conference is not the juggernaut that it could have been this season. In fact, with the exception of the beasts of the West, Dallas and Colorado, no team in the NHL is really dominating. The Flyers currently have the 7th-best points percentage in the league at .635%, which also has them at 3rd in the Metropolitan Division.

With injuries currently plaguing the East, that is bound to change.

So, for the Flyers, a young team, to show they can handle their business against a team like the Sabres, even with injuries of their own, it’s really an encouraging sign.

Forget the draft, or what some NHL insiders will say about how just making the playoffs is a waste of a season. If you start an NHL season with the intention to win games, making the playoffs should be the goal.

If Philadelphia is going to push for the postseason, it needs to handle its business against teams like the Sabres and others at the bottom of the barrel. At times this season, like the Calgary game and both matchups with the Blues, it looked a bit discouraging for the team’s playoff hopes.

However, their win against the Sabres felt different. In their first game without Tyson Foerster, there were many questions about the team and whether it could make up for the lost production.

Rick Tocchet said he wanted everyone to be 5% better. He got that from his team on Wednesday. The Flyers’ young players stepped up and showed up on the scoresheet, while the Flyers’ veterans like Travis Konecny, Sean Couturier, and Travis Sanheim also impacted the contest.

Not every game is going to be like Wednesday. But if the Flyers can continue to take advantage of games against teams they should beat, it is an encouraging sign for this young team.

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